One: Jules has the sort of easily-digestible voice and air-brushed melodic grace that makes FM radio programmers fall to their knees in prayer as they fill their Calvins with pleasure.

Two: he’s an accomplished stylist who is as happy knocking off ‘Broke Window‘ (Simon And Gartfunkel with a headcold), ‘Lucky‘ (Nick Drake via very early Steve Earle) and ‘Umbilical laments such as ‘Bar Stool‘ (Neil Young by way of a teenage Tom Waits)

Had it not been for his actually rather marvellous cover of Tears For Fears ‘Mad World’ (better than real REM could manage) we’d probably never have heard of him, but might, if our luck was really in, have stumbled across him in the back room of some LA beer-hall singing for drinks.

However, Gary Jules fit nicely into the lucrative David Gray/Damien Rice market.